Modus Operandi
by etceterae
Summary: There's limits to Kudo's deduction and Kaito's theft. Misunderstandings and thefts gone awry threaten to break them away from each other forever. //Alibi: Shinichi and Hakuba discuss murders when they hear news they thought could never happen


**Fandom:** Detective Conan/Case Closed/Magic Kaitou

**Disclaimer:** They belong to Gosho Aoyama. I wish they were mine. o.o

**Story** **Title:** Modus Operandi

**Story Summary: **Shinichi can only deduce so far, and Kaito can only steal certain things. They are each other's false evidence, and each other's blocked escapes.

**Notes:** I had two versions of Planetarium, and the one that was more developed became that. The second version kind of aged a little, but then I got some inspiration from PurpleKyu, one of my best real-life friends. I hope you enjoy the first chapter. The print is relevant; it's not like I had no idea how to open the story so did random crap ;D (which, honestly, is something I do quite often until I can think of something more appropriate) Also - the chronological sequence of this story is intentionally out of order, so be prepared for some timeshifts and flashbacks.

**Chapter Title: **Alibi

**Chapter Summary: **Shinichi and Hakuba discuss murders when they hear news they thought could never happen.

**Chapter Quote: **"I wonder what he's up to. No notices, and no reports of anything particularly shiny missing."

* * *

_beep _"Ran here. Hakuba cleaned up the details at the murder scene. We ran into some trouble, but it was taken care of. I'll be home soon. Love you." _beep_

_beep_ "Hey, it's Heiji. So I've got some more information about that case...we can meet tomorrow at 8 in that sushi restaurant - don't remember the name...it's the one that Hakuba got food poisoning at. Haha. Yeah, that one....good times....Meet you there. Don't forget to bring your stuff. _beep_

_beep_ "Hi...it's Kuroba. We - we need to talk. Call me back. Or send -" _beep _"Message deleted." _beep_

Kudo Shinichi pushed his answering machine away and sighed, gazing at a Japanese print that hung on his wall. His father had bought it for him on one of his tours across - of all places - the West, and delivered the scroll home (without any sort of message, or even postcard, noted Shinichi) amongst numerous other things. It had been buried in a chest in the attic until now, when Shinichi decided that morning to look for something that he never quite found. And now he examined it determindly, trying to erase thoughts that had arisen when he heard the last voice on his answering machine.

The edges of the print curled inward from age, and the once colorful hues of the dragon's scales had now settled behind a layer of grey age. The eyes still flashed an iridescent blue, a strange, unearthly pale shade that nonetheless looked depthless every time Shinichi looked at them. _It's some trick with the paint_, he thought. _Perhaps a different chemical compound, with preservative abilities. Or maybe the rest was covered with an oil film to hasten fading, so that the eyes would stand out._

The phone rang, and Shinichi started from his reverie. He checked the ID to make sure it wasn't a certain person, then answered. "Hello?"

"It's Hakuba. I got stuck in traffic earlier, but if you'll just give me a moment, I should be over quite soon."

"How's Ran?"

"Ran? She's tired, but fine. Got me out of a spot of trouble earlier with a suspiciously violent suspect, actually," said the Brit in amused tones. "You're right, I suppose I really should take up karate."

"Yes, I suppose your English fondness for tea and clever wit does little in times of danger, aside from possibly burning enemies and somewhat offending their pride," said Shinichi dryly, referencing an earlier conversation in which Hakuba had soundly dismissed the value of sports. ("Isn't the pursuit of knowledge infinitely more valuable than having enormously swollen arms and legs? Have you _seen _pictures of that American governor when he was Mr. Universe? Horrendous. _Horrendous_.")

Hakuba sighed. "It was an off-hand comment that I wasn't serious about. Now stop teasing me about it. I'll see you soon." He hung up, but not before Shinichi caught the sound of Ran laughing in the background.

He smiled.

* * *

"...so you see, it doesn't really matter if she had been home at that time," concluded Shinichi.

"You mean that lugging a dead, flopping body down the stairs while it leaves a trail of blood and rank isn't noticeable in the slightest bit? Excellent deduction, Kudo," said Hakuba flatly, leaning back in his chair like a contented cat. "_You, _my friend,are an uncredited genius."

"No, that's not it," said Shinichi impatiently, jabbing at the diagrams he had hastily drawn on napkins. "There was a hook under the balcony, remember? If you had just attached a rope here-"

"So now it's a _swinging_, dead, flopping body? And do remember, Kudo, that there was no evidence of blood or cleaner on the walls, because I am quite certain there would have been a lovely spray of blood everywhere had one decided to fling a bloody man overhead."

Shinichi groaned and buried his face in his hands. "Forget it. I've got a headache. You've got a vendetta. Let's take a breather."

"Great idea," said Ran, dashing from the kitchen with a pot of tea. All evening she had been throwing dirty looks at the two detectives, who were stubbornly trying to outwit each other over the murder case. Men, she had told Aoko over the phone, could have IQ's of 3000 for all she cared, but they would still remain thickheaded idiots to her.

"So, Saguru-san," said Ran tentatively, trying to steer things toward small talk, "anything interesting happen to you lately?"

"Not really," mused the Brit, nursing his cup of tea. Ran smiled, reminded of Shinichi's childish protectiveness over _The Sign Of Four_. "I've got an odd case involving a candymaker and, to quote the comissioner, 'lollipops of death', but otherwise my work has been the usual." He frowned, and tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Though, there have been reports of Kaitou Kid around the Tokyo area."

"I've heard," said Shinichi tensely. "I wonder what he's up to. No notices, and no reports of anything particularly shiny missing. He might be getting ready to steal something pretty big, if he bothers to go out in costume for mere preparations."

"Flamboyant bastard," said Hakuba calmly and sipped his tea. At this departure from small talk, Ran sighed and walked away, presumably to talk on the phone to Kazuha or Aoko. "To be honest," continued Hakuba thoughtfully, "I get a strange sort of fun out of chasing him. He's one of the few people that's ever really proved a worthy rival....Kudo?"

"Yeah?"

"You faded a bit there. Feeling all right?"

"Too much work, that's all," said Shinichi, waving his hands. "I feel like an old man already."

"Hmm," said Hakuba quietly. "I see."

"What?"

"There's a bit of cream on your nose, you might want to wipe it off."

"Hakuba-san, that is the worst distraction I've ever heard."

"The more obvious, the better, so that it's apparent that I've noticed something different about you, but I don't want you to know what. And yet at the same time, I want you to know that I've observed _something_. Kindly ponder on that_, tantei-kun_."

Shinichi collapsed backwards into his chair and moaned something indecipherable. "You're impossible. Stop trying to make my headache worse. It's bad eno-"

The bedroom door burst open, and Ran ran into the room, clutching a phone that was emitting excited noises. "Turn on the television! Turn it on!" she said urgently.

Hakuba, being the perfectionist and observant person he was, found the remote before Shinichi did (though to the Brit's confusion, Shinichi was making very sluggish efforts to find the remote). He quickly switched to a news channel and watched as helicopters and flare lights zoomed about a museum, and police officers swarmed towards all entrances.

"What...?" he muttered, frowning. Shinichi leaned in to hear the reporter's frantic words, and Ran gushed all the news into the telephone with her friend. Hakuba stood up, bewildered by the unfolding events.

There had been a break-in to the museum by Kaitou Kid. The security had been cleverly breached, and there had been little fanfare through the whole operation. There had even been sightings of him escaping through the back. But the break-in wasn't the reason why this was causing headline news. It was something else entirely -

- the infamous Phantom Thief had failed to steal anything.

* * *

_**A/N:** A little random information about myself: DC/CC comics involving Kaitou Kid take me extra long to read because I cannot resist the urge to scream like a prepubescent, insane fangirl every time I see him. And I'm not even very interested in manga at all XD I will always make an exception for Death Note, DC/CC, Hikaru no Go and Angel Sanctuary though._

_Oh, and Happy New Year's Eve! :)  
_


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